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Great Woodcuts of Albrecht Durer: 94 Illustrations
A master of many media, Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528) excelled in the art of woodcut design. This modestly priced edition, comprising images both sacred and secular, offers an ideal introduction to his work. Scenes from the lives of Jesus and the saints and episodes from the Old Testament appear alongside a variety of subjects, including a portrait of the Emperor Maximilian and Dürer's coat of arms.
The ninety-four black-and-white illustrations feature brief captions with basic information regarding titles and dates. Long treasured by the world's art lovers, these familiar and lesser-known woodcuts are reproduced in excellent detail. They constitute an indispensable archive for professional art historians and critics as well as a source of pleasure for all others.
The ninety-four black-and-white illustrations feature brief captions with basic information regarding titles and dates. Long treasured by the world's art lovers, these familiar and lesser-known woodcuts are reproduced in excellent detail. They constitute an indispensable archive for professional art historians and critics as well as a source of pleasure for all others.
- GenresArt
96 pages, Paperback
First published May 25, 2004
About the author
Albrecht Dürer
301 books26 followersGerman painter and engraver Albrecht Dürer incorporated the classicism of the Renaissance of Italy into northern European art.
This printmaker and theorist hailed from Nuremberg.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albrech...
This printmaker and theorist hailed from Nuremberg.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albrech...
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
May 9, 2016
Nice little introduction about Dürer. Would have been stronger with a bit more background regarding patronage and the popularity of Apocalypse cults. This would probably frame the themes of the prints shown in the book better. Additionally, while some works have the dates inscribed on them, many have none; therefore, dating the woodcuts would have been useful.
Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
A fair reference of the works. Though some of my personal favorites, his most popular and well-known pieces are not included. Dürer's draughtsmanship is unparalleled even today, and he knew it back then.
Saint Michael Fighting the Dragon
Rhinoceros
Became one of the first popular artists and printed his own works for profit. In fact, they were so popular that others tried to copy his works and Dürer petitioned the Church to sanction the counterfeiters. Genius and not a particularly nice man, he had a delightful arrogance and signed all his works with his initials.
Self Portrait--not included within the book
Overall, a handy reference for those deeply interested in his works, but probably less appealing to lay persons and the average reader looking for the masterpieces.
~ARC provided by NetGalley~
Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
A fair reference of the works. Though some of my personal favorites, his most popular and well-known pieces are not included. Dürer's draughtsmanship is unparalleled even today, and he knew it back then.
Saint Michael Fighting the Dragon
Rhinoceros
Became one of the first popular artists and printed his own works for profit. In fact, they were so popular that others tried to copy his works and Dürer petitioned the Church to sanction the counterfeiters. Genius and not a particularly nice man, he had a delightful arrogance and signed all his works with his initials.
Self Portrait--not included within the book
Overall, a handy reference for those deeply interested in his works, but probably less appealing to lay persons and the average reader looking for the masterpieces.
~ARC provided by NetGalley~
May 8, 2018
A little disappointing. I was expecting more descriptions and history.
May 10, 2016
'Great Woodcuts of Albrecht Dürer' is an affordable intro to this artist's work. The collection is edited by Carol Belanger Grafton and includes a short introduction.
Albrecht Dürer produced over a thousand artistic pieces druing is life. Presented here are his woodcut designs. For the woodcuts, he provided the drawing and others created the cut woodblock. The collection is primarily religious in nature, but there are secular subjects as well. There is a great amount of detail in the drawings. The crumbling walls have pits. The clothing has folds. The drawings have depth.
Some of the reproductions are a bit fuzzier. I imagine the source materials to be rather old since the work dates from the 13th Century. This would also explain the plethora of drawings of martyrs and Biblical scenes. I really enjoyed looking through this collection and seeing the minute details in every single picture, even something that looks like it's just a study for a larger drawing.
I received a review copy of this ebook from Dover Publications and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.
Albrecht Dürer produced over a thousand artistic pieces druing is life. Presented here are his woodcut designs. For the woodcuts, he provided the drawing and others created the cut woodblock. The collection is primarily religious in nature, but there are secular subjects as well. There is a great amount of detail in the drawings. The crumbling walls have pits. The clothing has folds. The drawings have depth.
Some of the reproductions are a bit fuzzier. I imagine the source materials to be rather old since the work dates from the 13th Century. This would also explain the plethora of drawings of martyrs and Biblical scenes. I really enjoyed looking through this collection and seeing the minute details in every single picture, even something that looks like it's just a study for a larger drawing.
I received a review copy of this ebook from Dover Publications and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this ebook.
April 20, 2016
Durer was a prolific and varied producer of woodcuts though it appears that the majority had some religious theme, hardly unusual for an artist of his time. What amazes me in looking through the examples provided in this book is the remarkable amount of detail he was able to create, the expressions, details of clothing or brickwork or flora and fauna. I am again also struck by the medieval European settings for biblical stories. And then there is the wonderful Rhinoceros!
Some of my favorites are among the secular entries: the animals, the astronomer, but also the second example of the Adoration of the Magi provided here. And this brings up what I see as a weakness of this book. While this is a wonderful sampling of Durer's work, there is minimal commentary and no dates (or approximations) provided so no way to know whether I prefer the early or later works or whether they are spread throughout his career.
For those interested in Durer's woodcuts, this might be a nice work to have as a handy personal resource--also for those interested in art of this period.
A copy of this book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest review.
Some of my favorites are among the secular entries: the animals, the astronomer, but also the second example of the Adoration of the Magi provided here. And this brings up what I see as a weakness of this book. While this is a wonderful sampling of Durer's work, there is minimal commentary and no dates (or approximations) provided so no way to know whether I prefer the early or later works or whether they are spread throughout his career.
For those interested in Durer's woodcuts, this might be a nice work to have as a handy personal resource--also for those interested in art of this period.
A copy of this book was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest review.
October 22, 2023
If you've just been to an art museum and viewed one of Albrecht Durer's works(which is likely as he created so many pieces of art), then you might want a keepsake to remind you of this amazing artist. This book fills the bill as you won't need to spend much money and the size of the book, nearly a foot high, is perfect for showing off the full page woodcuts. This is actually a compilation of select works from the 1927 book, [The Complete Woodcuts of Albrecht...]. There is a new biographical notation from 2004, and of course the book design is new. Most of the works are of the Christian religion, Jesus comprising a good portion. There are also works in regards to Maximillian I, Holy Roman Emperor, 1459-1519; the art of measurement; 2 of animals; the art of measurement; Hercules; 1 of astronomy; 1 of astrology(Zodiac Held by Astrology Muse, Urania). It's a nice book to just browse through and you might find yourself doing some independent research to learn more about the subjects of the woodcuts. Do you know who Don Pedro Lasso is? This just might turn out to be your 1st of many books of AD. And, oh yes, if you like Greek Mythology, you will research the Hercules woodcut, for sure!
April 7, 2020
Most of Albrecht's depictions of people are straight up scary.
Want to read
April 18, 2021Note: I received a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.
April 15, 2016
Lesson one from this book for me was, being only really aware of the Rhinoceros, how religious an artist Durer was. Here we get three Crucifixions, two Last Suppers, and a lot more besides. They start out at one fine level, and achieve something else when his mathematical mind produced such excellent and notable achievements in perspective. The problem with this book is you have to piece such narratives together yourself – you can see a progression in the work easily, again moving from great to superlative, but there is no editorialising, and nothing even gets a date, origin or reason. Still, such as this publisher puts out appealing primers for major authors for you to sample before moving on with your own studies, so this collection at under a hundred pages is only going to make you want to see – and read – further.
April 16, 2016
This is a great collection of Albrecht Dürer's intricate woodcuts, without much commentary. His work is beautiful, so this collection is worth having if you are a fan of his work, or of woodcuts in general. I especially like his close portraits and his animals.
This collection features some lesser known works as well as his more acclaimed pieces. It is not particularly a thorough collection, even a thorough collection of only his woodcuts. That would be near impossible with as prolific as he was, but it is nice to see the chosen cuts together in this edition.
**eARC Netgalley**
This collection features some lesser known works as well as his more acclaimed pieces. It is not particularly a thorough collection, even a thorough collection of only his woodcuts. That would be near impossible with as prolific as he was, but it is nice to see the chosen cuts together in this edition.
**eARC Netgalley**
April 17, 2016
As a printmaker I really admire Durer work. This book provides 92 of his fabulous prints - all black and white, of course but wonderful. I cannot get over the artistry in his work - each line is clearly shown, yet blends into the fabric of the print, light, shade and shadow all there with just a line. This book is a must for any printmaker, or anyone who has an interest in print making.
This book was provided to me in return for an honest and unbiased review
This book was provided to me in return for an honest and unbiased review
May 3, 2016
With skill and artistry
ahead of his time
Durer
demonstrates here
why he is an artistic Master
still beloved centuries later
ahead of his time
Durer
demonstrates here
why he is an artistic Master
still beloved centuries later
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews